Began her career at age 3 performing on local Detroit's "Radio Schoolhouse".
Wrote and recorded with Specialty Records before joining Motown in the 1960s and 1970s where she worked as an arranger and co-wrote Jermaine Jackson's hit album "Let's Get Serious".
Was featured as Wendy Darling in Mary Martin's TV version of
Peter Pan (1960), and also appeared with Martin in
Broadway's "The Sound of Music" when she served as a replacement for
the role of Liesl.
Her daughter. Kathleen, was a competitive ice skater. She died while swimming in the Kern River, along with her boyfriend, Mark Lawrence.
Children: Stephen Thomas Carysfort (1962) and Kathleen Velden Carysfort (1965-1986).